By Oliver Tant, Head of Audit

I’ve been reflecting on the findings of our recent survey of students and parents, looking at changing behaviour as a result of increased university costs.  Although the effects of rising university fees are not unexpected, it is still a shock to read that while 71 percent of respondents (including 78 percent of school leavers) believe that going to university is as important as it ever was, 19 percent of parents were prepared to admit that  “part of me hopes my child won’t get in or hadn’t got in to university because of the costs I could face.”

By Michelle Quest, UK Head of People

I’ve got youth on my mind, and I’m not talking anti-ageing. Late last month I visited KPMG’s Class of 2012 at Exeter University, a group of young people chosen for our innovative School Leavers’ Programme. In the same week, Nick Clegg announced the £1 billion Youth Contract initiative and the media lamented statistics published by the Department for Education on NEETs – young people Not in Education, Employment or Training, currently almost one in five 16 to 24 year olds in England.

By Michelle Quest, UK Head of People
Horrible Bosses is a big budget Hollywood comedy with a stellar cast, dismal reviews and an unlikely plot. Cut a long story short, three miserable friends with completely awful bosses (in three different organisations) conspire to have them ‘taken out’. Suffice to say I couldn’t watch all 98 minutes of the film, but it did get me thinking about the impact of poor people management on employee morale and ultimately business performance.